Wire blast machine



H. DAVIDSON WIRE BLAST MACHINE Dec. 2 1969 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 30, 1967 FIG. Z

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WIRE BLAST MACHINE Filed June 30, 1967 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Dec. 2, 1969 H. DAVIDSON WIRE BLAST MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 30, 1967 United States Patent Int. Cl. B24c 3/10, 3/00 US. Cl. 51-9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An abrasive cleaning apparatus for lengths of tape, wire and the like wherein the lengths are moved through a housing whilethe coils forming the lengths are maintained 'in spaced apart relationship. Centrifugal wheels direct abrasives toward the coil surfaces and at least some of the wheels are located within the confines of the coils whereby the abrasives are directed toward the inside surfaces of the coils. Drive motors for the wheels are mounted in stationary positions inside or outside the confines of the coils and means for imparting driving action to the motors extend through openings between the coils to provide for operation of the wheels.

This invention relates to an apparatus, particularly suitable for the handling of continuous lengths of tape, wire and similar materials during an abrasive cleaning operation.

Installations for the continuous abrasive cleaning of wire or tape-like material are well-known. Such installations include means wherein the material to be cleaned is suspended by appropriate devices and carried in spiral fashion through a treatment area. An attempt is made to provide unimpeded access of the abrasives over the entire surface of the material to be cleaned.

In other devices, attempts have been made to clean entire bundles of wire or tape by suspending the bundles on a revolving arm. The suspended bundles are then exposed to streams of abrasives in an attempt to reach all surfaces to be cleaned.

Prior art installations have been somewhat unacceptable primarily due to inconsistent results which are achieved when an attempt is made to provide a rapid and efficient cleaning operation. The inconsistent results are attributed to the fact that the prior installations have not provided suitable means for controlling the spacing between coils which are to be cleaned, or have, for other reasons, prevented uniformity in the application of the abrasives. Where the installations provided for passage through a cleaning area in spiral fashion, contact between coils will result in insufficient exposure to the abrasive; while undue space between coils will result in inefiicient utilization of the blast due to a large portion of the streams of abrasives passing through the wire coils without striking the wire surfaces. In installations where an attempt is made to clean entire bundles, it is virtually impossible to provide uniform distribution of the abrasives over all surfaces of the coils.

In Patent No. 3,107,455, there is a description of an abrasive cleaning apparatus which is highly suitable for the cleaning of coils. This apparatus provides a reliable means for maintaining the coils in spaced apart relationship while continuously moving the coils through a housing having centrifugal wheels associated with the housing. These wheels located outside the coils are capable of directing abrasive onto all surfaces of the coil, a portion of the abrasive stream striking the outside surfaces of the coils as they pass under the wheels and another portion passing through the openings in the coil to strike the inside surfaces on the opposite side of the coil.

3,481,080 Patented Dec. 2, 1969 Due to a partial masking or shadow effect of the wire on the streams of abrasive and due to different distances the abrasive must travel before striking a surface to be cleaned, the inside surfaces of the coil receive less intensity of blast than the outside surfaces. Thus, the conveyor speed of the coils through the cabinet must be regulated to thoroughly clean the inside surfaces of the coil, resulting in a lower output of cleaned coils than would have been achieved had the same intensity of blast hit both the inside and the outside surfaces.

A more serious deficiency occurs when blast cleaning high carbon steel wire or alloy steel Wire. In throwing sults in the outside surfaces being cold worked causing problems in subsequent operations such as cold drawing of the wire.

It is a basic object of this invention to provide improvements in an abrasive cleaning apparatus, particularly an apparatus of the type described in the aforementioned patent.

It is a more specific object of this invention to provide an abrasive cleaning apparatus which includes centrifugal wheels strategically located whereby maximum cleaning effectiveness can be realized.

These and other objects of this invention will appear hereinafter, and for purposes of illustration but not of limitation, specific embodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of an abrasive cleaning apparatus characterized by the features of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is an end elevational view illustrating one form of driving means employed in the apparatus;

FIGURE 3 is an end elevation illustrating an alternative form of driving means employed in the apparatus;

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view of the apparatus; and

FIGURE 5 is a diagrammatic illustration of the manner in which abrasive is directed onto the material being cleaned.

This invention relates to a cleaning apparatus for continuous lengths of tape, wire and the like. The cleaning is accomplished by means of abrasives which are directed at high speed into contact with the material surfaces by means of centrifugal wheels or other conventional devices. The lengths are moved through a housing during the cleaning operation, and means are provided for maintaining the coils making up the lengths in spaced apart relationship during the cleaning. By moving the lengths through the housing at a controlled speed, uniform cleaning can be accomplished.

The specific improvements of this invention include the provision of abrasive cleaning means situated within the confines of the coils whereby abrasives can be directed toward the inside surfaces of the coils. With this arrangement, particularly in combination with other improvements of this invention, a more complete and efficient cleaning operation can be realized.

FIGURE 1 illustrates an abrasive cleaning apparatus 10 comprising a housing 12 defining an entry end 14 and an exit end 16. As described in the aforementioned patent, chambers 18 may be located at the top of the housing and centrifugal wheels 20 are provided within these chambers. Drive motors 22 operate the centrifugal wheels by means of belts 24. Abrasives are fed to the wheels through pipes 26.

The length of wire being treated is made up of individual coils 28. The coils are advanced through the housing by means of a rotating shaft 30 provided with spaced apart ribs 32. A single coil is preferably interposed between adjacent ribs so that a uniform spaced apart relationship is achieved as the length of material is advanced through the housing.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG- URES 1, 2 and 4, additional centrifugal wheels 34 and 36 are located, respectively, in the entrance and exit ends of the housing. These wheels are situated within the confines of the moving coils as best shown in FIGURE 2. Drive motors 38 are mounted on the housing outside the confines of the moving coils. Drive belts 40 extend upwardly to pulleys 31 to thereby drive shafts 33. The shafts 33 extend between the moving coils without in any way disrupting the operation of the system. Abrasives are fed to the wheels through tubes 39 which also extend through openings defined between the moving coils.

With the arrangement shown, abrasive can be directed toward the inside surfaces of the wheels. This provides an ideal combination with the wheels 20 whereby complete and highly efficient abrasive cleaning can be realized.

The remaining parts of the system include a grate 42 and a hopper 44 which receives abrasive passing through the grate. A screw conveyor 46 removes the abrasive which collects in the hopper.

In a preferred form of the invention, deflecting plates 48 and 50 are provided within the housing. The plate 48 is located adjacent the bottom portion of the moving coils outside the confines of the coils. As shown in FIG- URE 5, abrasives passing from the wheel 34 will strike the plate '48 and, due to the angle of the plate, will be deflected back toward the coil surfaces. This provides additional cleaning possibilities for further improvement in the operation.

The plate 50 is situated within the confines of the coil for deflecting abrasives from one of the wheels 20. This provides for additional cleaning opportunities.

FIGURE 3 illustrates an alternative form of the invention wherein the centrifugal wheels 34 and 36 are driven by means of motors 52 which are also located within the confines of the coils. Wires for feeding current to the motors 52 can be attached to the tubes feeding abrasives to the wheels or to other convenient means, for example struts which may extend between the coil lengths for purposes of supporting the motors and associated wheels in position.

As suggested by the dotted line showing in FIGURE 5, the coils 28 can vary considerably in diameter for purposes of a cleaning operation. Contact of the abrasive with all surfaces of the coils will be achieved for all diameters within the ranges illustrated.

The constructions described effectively overcome the disadvantages referred to above. Specifically location of the wheels in the manner described provides a substantially uniform abrasive blast for both the inside surfaces and outside surfaces of the coils. Accordingly, the conveyor speed does not have to be reduced for purposes of insuring that one surface will be sufiiciently treated to the detriment of the other surface which might then be overblasted. This permits a suitably high operating speed while also eliminating the danger of cold working certain surfaces of the coils.

It will be understood that various changes and modifications may be made in the above described construction which provide the characteristics of this invention without departing from the spirit thereof particularly as defined in the following claims.

That which is claimed is:

1. In an abrasive cleaning apparatus for continuous lengths of coils such as tape and wire, including means for moving said lengths through a housing while maintaining the coils forming the lengths in spaced apart relationship, and means for directing abrasives toward said coils, the improvement wherein the means for directing said abrasives include centrifugal wheels located within the confines of the coils forming said lengths whereby said abrasives are directed toward the inside surfaces of said coils, means for driving the centrifugal wheels including drive elements extending through spaces between said coils, and means extending through spaces defined between the coils for feeding abrasives to the centrifugal wheels.

2. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein additional centrifugal wheels are located at the top of the housing for directing abrasives downwardly onto the outside surfaces of said coils.

3. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein said lengths move through openings defined by said housing at the entrance and exit ends thereof, and wherein said centrifugal wheels are located at said ends and are positioned to direct abrasive inwardly.

4. An apparatus in accordance with claim 3 wherein said centrifugal wheels direct the abrasive at an angle downwardly toward the inside surfaces of said coils.

5. An apparatus in accordance with claim 3 including motors for driving said wheels, said motors being mounted in a stationary position outside the confines of said coils, driving belts extending from said motors to drive shafts, said drive shafts passing through openings defined by the spaced apart coils, and said drive shafts being connected to said wheels.

6. An apparatus in accordance with claim 2 wherein all of said wheels direct said abrasive downwardly.

7. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 including plate means positioned adjacent said coils on the side of the coils opposite from said wheels whereby a substantial proportion of the abrasives strike said plate means after contacting said coils.

8. An apparatus in accordance with claim 6 including first plate means positioned within the confines of said coils whereby abrasives from the wheels at the top of said housing strike said plate means after passing through the portions of the coils at the top of the housing, and second plate means positioned outside the confines of said coils at the bottom of the housing whereby abrasives from the wheels within the confines of the coils strike said second plate means after passing through the portions of the coils at the bottom of the housing.

9. An apparatus in accordance with claim 8 wherein said plate means are adapted to deflect said abrasives whereby at least a portion of the abrasives will rebound for further contact with said coils.

10. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1 including motors for driving said wheels, said motors being mounted within the confines of said coils, and including means for feeding power to said motors extending through openings defined by the spaced apart coils.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,952,848 3/1934 Eckler 5114 2,601,746 7/1952 Clark 5115 3,107,455 10/1963 Gloor et al. 519 3,167,885 2/1965 Gloor 5115 LESTER M. SWINGLE, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 51-14 

